Toy gun



May 1927* w. A. TIDWELL.

TOY GUN Filed Dec. 16, 926

H. 4 e m J v R1 W M M O M T n 4 T T a t H W 'MJ E A A v F V m of 5 m M.iinl;i W H 6 Patented May 3, 1927.

UNIT ED STATES WILLIAM A. TIDTWELL, 0F INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA TOY GUN.

Application filed December 16, 1926. SeriaLNo. 155,153;

This. invention relates to a toy gun, par ticularly to a mechanism forprojecting a rubber ball. and has for its object the furnishing ot a toywhereby a ball may be projected mechanically with substantial ac curacyover a considerable distance by release at a trigger. Another importantobject is the extreme simplicity of the structure permitting a very lowcost of production and use of automatic machinery to reduce hand.operations to the lowestpossible minimum.

A further object resides in the part cular means for retaining the ballso that it may be released without interference by any parts otherwisecausing a deflection of the ball from an initial straigl'lt linetrajectory.

The invention is described in reference to the accompanying drawing, inwhich- Fig. 1, is a side elevation of the toygun withthe ball ready tobe released;

Fig. 2, a top plan view of the gun;

Fig. 3, a side elevation of the gun-with the ball in its first stages offlight immediately upon being released;

Fig. 4., an enlarged vertical section on the line 4-4 in. Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 an enlarged vertical section on the line 55 in Fig. 3.

Like characters indicate throughout the several views.

A, gun 10 is formed preferably of. wood. Mounted on each side of the gun10 just forward of the part corresponding to the breech of a real gun,is a. disk 11, free to revolve about a. retaining rivet 25 centrallypassed through the two disks 11 and the gun- 10, the circumference ofeach disk not extending to beyond the top edge of the gun. 7

Each disk 11 integrally carries an up,- wardly projecting finger 12and'also a rearwardly projecting arm 13. The rear ends of the arms 13are joined by the cross piece .14 which forms a thumb rest in setting orloading the gun.

Cut in from the circumference of each disk 11, forwardly and below thefingers 12, is a notch 24, and engaging in these notches, are the pawls15 pivotally carried on the gun immediately below the disks 11 by therivet 16. The two pawls 15 extend downwardly from their pivots under thegun and around toward each other to be joined on substantially thevertical cenlike parts ter line of the gun to form the trigger 17, sothat by pulling back thetrigger 17 both pawls 1.5 may besimultaneouslywithdrawn from the notches 24.

A vertical slot 18 is cut across the muzzle end of the gun to receivethe knotted end of a rubber. string 19 having a rubber ball 21 attachedto its other end. A knot 20 in the rubber is drawn up against the underside of the gun muzzle, the string 19, passed u along in the slot18, andthen stretched backwardly over. the top of the gun and the ball 21positioned behind the two fingers.

Pulling back the trigger 17 will release the pawls 15 from the disks11,. and the great tension to which the rubber string 19 has beensubjected, will. cause the ball 21. 1

to shoot fm'wardly pressing down the fingers 12 and raising the arms 13,as indicated by dash lines in Fig, 3. As the ball 21 travels, the string19 is released from the end of the gun and travels with the ball. 21 inits flight. i

The pawls 15 serve as stops to contact the fingers 12 when they arethrown for wardly so that the arms 13 come to rest when projectingupwardly from the gun to afford a convenient means to be contacted anddrawn back by the thumb of the operator to bring the fingers 12 back totheir upright positions.

A torsion spring 22 is carried on the rivet 16, one end being-engaged toone pawl 15. and the other end secured in the gun 10 so that the pawlsare tended to be held in contact against thedisks 11 whereby the pawlsimmediately engage in the notches 24 upon. the fingers 12 being broughtback to the initialfposition.

It is obvious that numerous changes and substitutions may be made in thestructure here shown without departing from the spirit of the invention,and I, therefore, do not desire to be limited to the precise structureshown, nor any more than may be required by the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a toy gun, a barrel, a disk pivotally mounted on each side of thebarrel, a hammer finger normally extending upwardly from each disk, eachof said disks having a notch formed therein, a trigger having its upperend bifurcated to straddle the barrel from its under side and pivotallycarried on ill all

the barrel. by said ends, and a pawl extending from each of said ends toengage in sail disk notches.

In a toy gun, a barrel, a disk pivotally n'ionnted on each side of thebarrel, a hammer finger normally extending upwardly from each disk, eachof said disks having a notch formed therein, a trigger having its upperend bifurcated to straddle the barrel from its under side and pivotallycarried on the barrel by said ends, and a pawl cxtenrb in from each ofsaid ends to engage in said disk notches, spring means for boi ing saidpawls in contact with said disks, and a yoke having arms attached tosaid dishe said yoke normally extending to the rear of said disks.

3, In a toy gun, a disk pivotally carried on each side of the gun nearits breech end, said disks being free to rotate on the same axis, ahammer linger extending from each of said disks, a trigger carried bythe gun, a pawl extending from the trigger to ei'igage in a stop in oneof said disks, and means for normally maintaining said pawl incontactwith said disk.

-':l- In a toy gun, a barrel, a disk pirotally mounted on each side ofthe barrel, a hammer linger normally extending upwardly from each disk,each of said disks having a notch formed therein, a trigger having itsupper end bifurcated to straddle the barrel from its under side andpivotaliy carried on the barrel by said ends, and a pawl extending fromeach of said ends to engage in said disk notches, spring means forholding said pawls in contact with said disks, and a yoke haying armsattached to said disks, said yoke normally extending to the rear of saiddisks, and a yoke substantially U-shaped securing said disks, one to theother.

5. in a toy gun adapted to projecta rubber ball having a rubber stringattached to it, a barrel, hammer fingers, one pivotally secured to eachside of the barrel near its breech end whereby the fingers are free torotate in parallel planes, a trigger, a pawl spring pressed against acontacting surface extending from one of said fingers about its point ofrotation, a thumb piece having an arm extending to each of said fingerswhereby. by pulling'the thumb piece baclm'ardly, said fingers may bebrought to an erect position to permit said pawl to drop into a notch insaid finger contacting surface, so that said ball may be positioned ontop of the barrel Location of said gun behind said two fingers and therubber string passed between the fingers over the top of the barrel andstretched to have its end dc aehably secured over the end of the barrel.

6. In a toy gun adapted. to project a rubbcr ball by means of an elasticspring altached to the ball; a gun barrel, a hammer unit comprising twomounting disks pivotah iy secured to and receiving the gun barreltherebctwcen, a hammer linger extending pa allel one to the other fromeach dis an arm extending from each disk angularly fron'i said arms, lthumb piece joining anu a the outer ends of the arms, one of said diskshaving a notch cut in from its periphery; a tr gger engaging saidnotched disk, a pawl spring pressed against the disk; said hannner unitbeing inlapted to be rocked by the thumb piece to bring the hammerfingers upright whereupon the pawl engages in the disk notch to forwardrotation of the hamn'ier fingers until withdrawn by said trigger; a restwhereby said ball may be positioned back of the two hammer lingers and.the string stretched between the lingers to be eng ed over the end ofthe gun barrel and said hammer lingers and said arms being carried bysaid disks so that said pawl stops one of said lingers before said thumbpiece strikes the barrel upon discharge ol the ball.

7. In a toy gun. adapted to project a rubber ball by means of an elasticstring attached to the ball; a gun barrel, a hammer unit comprising twomounting disks pivots ally secured. to and receiving the gun bar-- reltherebetwccn. a hammer linger extent ling parallel one to the other fromeach disk, an arm extending from each disk angularly from said arms, anda thumb piece joining the outer ends of the arms, said disks having anotch cut in its outer edge, a trigger hav ing its upper end bifurcatedto form parallel pawls pivotally secured to and extending one on eachside of the gun barrel toward said disks, spring means normallymaintaining said pawls in contact with said disks, said hammer unitadapted to be rocked by the thumb piece to bring the hammer fingers toan upright position to permitsaid pawls to engage in said disk notches,and said pawls acting as stops to limit the forward travel of saidhammer unit.

In testimony whereof I alli); my signature.

WILLIAM A. TIDWELL.

